Rahr & Sons Brewing Co. Snowmageddon

Snowmageddon is brewed with pale, chocolate and crystal malt, oats and East Kent Golding hops.

ABV: 9

ABW: 7.2

COLOR: 27

BITTERNESS: 55

ORIGINAL GRAVITY: 1094

Brewed in: Fort Worth, TX​

Where to Find This Beer: TX

Coffee and milk chocolate notes play tag in the aroma and initial sip. But quite a bit more roasted flavors greet you in mid-sip, and linger with a hint of licorice for a while after you swallow. At first, the oatmeal in this stout creates a velvety palate for the complexity of this beer, but surprisingly a bit more effervescence comes into play later on. The bubbles make for a drying feeling in the mouth, which, of course, can be slaked with more sips. But be cautious, as this monster weighs in at a deceptive 9%.- Lisa Morrison

It’s the pour that gives it away. Looking at the simple description “oatmeal stout” on the label, one could be forgiven for expecting something else. It pours with an ominous viscosity, oatmeal or not. Then the nose gives it away—a riot of almost solventlike esters, fairly appealing and slightly worrying, blended with a dark chocolate backdrop. As the beer sails silkily across the tongue, the impression is almost like a chocolate-covered mint, slightly sweet, but sharp into the finish. If you drink the whole bottle, you’ll want to consider your next move carefully. Right now—the move is ice cream.- Garrett Oliver

Lisa MorrisonLisa Morrison, aka the Beer Goddess, talks beer every day at her beer store and taproom, Belmont Station, and on a weekly radio show in her hometown of Portland, OR.

Garrett OliverGarrett Oliver is the brewmaster of The Brooklyn Brewery, the Editor-in-Chief of The Oxford Companion to Beer, the author of The Brewmaster’s Table, and the veteran host of more than 900 beer dinners in 15 countries.